Layer 2 scaling solution Polygon, formerly known as the Matic Network, has for the first time surpassed Ethereum in daily active users, partially driven by a wave of popularity in blockchain-based gaming.
According to analytics from PolygonScan, active addresses on the network are at 535,831 at time of writing as of October 3, while Ethereum is currently recording 472,079.
At the same point last month, Polygon recorded 199,752 users on its network, giving it a total monthly growth of over 168% between September 3 and October 3.
Data from decentralized application (DApp) tracker DappRadar suggests that a significant portion of Polygon’s traffic is coming from those playing Arc8, which is based on the Polygon network. Arc8 is a new esports gaming platform from Gamee, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, where users compete for crypto rewards, and also buy non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to enhance the gaming experience. Gamee has also partnered with Polygon to launch their own GMEE token, which users can “mine” from their mobile phones.
DappRadar currently shows Arc8 with 249,000 users in the last 24 hours, or the better part of half of all Polygon’s users, with the network’s explosion in active users closely correlating with the launch of the new game.
Blockchain-based gaming turned heads earlier in the year when Axie Infinity also exploded in users and managed to reach a valuation just shy of $30,000,000,000. Axie Infinity’s native token AXS is up 116586.6% since November 2020 according to CoinGecko, reaching all time highs of $154 on October 4. Axie Infinity allows users to collect, battle and breed creatures called Axies for rewards. Sky Mavis, the brand behind the game is now the fifth-biggest video game company in the world.
Perhaps foreshadowing the rise of blockchain gaming this year, Polygon’s MATIC clocked a parabolic rally to remember when it opened 2021 at just over a penny, before peaking out at $2.45 on May 19 for a casual 244X gain.
At time of writing, MATIC is trading at $1.29, down almost 4% on the day
